The Business Of Colin Kaepernick

All it took was one playoff game against the Green Bay Packers for quarterback Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers to become a household name across the United States. Kaepernick, who is inked in tattoos and is now known for kissing his biceps (referred to as "Kaepernicking"), threw for 263 yards and 2 touchdowns, but more impressively picked up another 181 yards with his legs for another 2 touchdowns, leading his team to a victory against the Packers.

The playoff win was business-as-usual for Kaepernick, who formally became the 49ers starting quarterback in the middle of the 2012 NFL season after Alex Smith was sidelined with an injury. He has not relinquished the starting role since given the opportunity to lead the 49ers. His accomplishments are praised and his star is growing, but Kaepernick has not "sold out." Off the field, he has remained low key (by design), which will not be changing any time soon.

"With Colin, in particular, we have purposefully laid low," explained Shawn M. Smith, PR & Marketing Directing for X-A-M Sports and the marketing agent for Colin Kaepernick. "We could have done some smaller partnerships last year, but we didn't want to put ourselves in a position that would take us out of opportunities for this year."

Smith and her client decided to take the long-term approach and not jump into any partnerships that may include short-term gains at the potential expense of building a worthwhile long-term portfolio. Further, the duo remains committed to only associating Kaepernick with companies, goods and services that meet specific requirements. "If it's not directly related to what he's doing, he's not super ambitious to be a part of it - he has no interest in doing a big campaign or being on a big billboard," added Smith. "I have to move him out of that sometimes, because he's just football. There are some players who really like to talk about all those other opportunities off the field and really get excited about them, but he's really not interested in that. His only focus is on football."

Smith understands that her job is to balance Kaepernick's desire to remain dedicated to his sport with an interest in growing and protecting his brand. "Colin knows that I will give him options, but I tell him it's his business, and if I feel strongly on something, then he will do it."

Kaepernick has some existing off-field relationships, including a deal with Nike to wear product on the field. He has also taken advantage of booking private signings and selling game worn gear, but as for the longer-term endorsement opportunities, the QB and his representatives will wait. However, Kaepernick and his agent will be in New Orleans for the Super Bowl no matter if the 49ers are scheduled to play or not. His marketing agent says that she will wait until then to establish many relationships with corporate executives.

Whether Kaepernick and his agent desire the receipt of pitches, they are constantly coming, and much more frequently since the win against Green Bay. "If I am counting memorabilia offers, appearances and product endorsement opportunities, I have received close to 20 offers [for Kaepernick] since the Green Bay game," said Smith. "None have been accepted at this point." Smith does envision Kaepernick eventually associating with companies in particular categories, including a headphone manufacturer, men's grooming company and an apparel entity. Although, Smith admits that those categories are probably what every other starting quarterback is looking for, as well.

After San Francisco's 45-31 win over the Packers, Kaepernick told the media, "I don’t want to be categorized." That was in response to the question of whether he wants to be known as a passer or runner. The same answer could be said regarding the quarterback's brand outside of the field. His marketing agent explained it this way: "He doesn't want to do the traditional - what everybody thinks he is supposed to do. He has made that evident with his tattoos and taking part in events that he wants to take part in."

Shawn Smith believes that her client has done everything right by showing what he can do, unleashing his talent on Sundays and keeping his nose to the grindstone. He has no known skeletons in his closet, appears to have a charming personality and as a result, has a very wide-open slate of opportunities ahead of him.

Meanwhile, Kaepernick and his team of advisors have begun to protect his intellectual property and build his online presence. They have started the process for trademarking the term "Kaepernicking," along with "Colin Kaepernick," "Kap7," and "Kap." Why the absence of an "e" in the final two applications? Supposedly, that is how Kaepernick has been spelling the shortened nickname his whole life, which his college (Nevada) adopted, as well.

Additionally, CKaepernick7.com is currently under construction. Kaepernick's agent attempted to acquire ColinKaepernick.com, but the domain owner was asking for $17,000, which led to the determination that the URL is not a necessity at the moment. Smith says she currently has no interest in suing to obtain the rights to the domain name and that she is just focusing on the positives for the time being. Luckily for Smith, there are a lot of positive things for her to be concerned with.

Darren Heitner is the Founder of HEITNER LEGAL and Founder/Chief Editor of Sports Agent Blog, a leading niche industry publication. He focuses on sports, entertainment, and intellectual property litigation and transactional work, and is the author of 2 editions of How to Pla...